Should Sunday night kickoffs be earlier?

In light of the overnight ratings posted on Sunday’s NFL games, can a case be made that NBC’s package of Sunday night games need to kick off earlier?

The Fox late-afternoon game, which was an uninspiring Cowboys-Packers matchup in 85 percent of the country (including the Capital Region), drew a 16.8 rating. The NBC prime-time show — which admittedly faces more competition from other networks — featured a terrific contest between the Patriots and Colts but managed “only” a 15.8.

Unfortunately, many fans gave up before the NBC game was finished.

The scheduled kickoff time was 8:20 p.m., but the actual start time was 8:31. It has been that way for several weeks now (earlier in the season, games actually did begin at 8:20).

Maybe it’s time to think about 8 p.m. After all, it is a Sunday. You don’t have to wait for people on the West Coast to return from work.